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"There aren't many soul men left in the world. John Nemeth is one of' em."
– Esquire

He is the 2014 Blues Music Award Winner for Soul Blues Artist of the Year. His trajectory from the Boise, Idaho bars of his youth (not THAT long ago) to SF/Oakland,and then recently to Memphis has only deepened his southern musical currency. From "Oakland Grease" to "Memphis Grease"!

"I learned a lot living in Oakland and San Francisco," Németh says, "from recording and performing with Elvin Bishop to hearing Jimmy Hughes perform. Oakland is like a truly southern city, only it's on the west coast. It wasn't until after I arrived that I discovered that so many great songs I love actually originated there."

The soul-blues scene he fell into in the Bay Area is historically referred to as "Oakland Grease," and a pair of Oakland's "greasiest" artists, guitarist Lowell Fulson and pianist Jimmy McCracklin, journeyed south to record two of their best, if often overlooked albums: For Németh, Memphis Grease is a natural concept.
In early 2013, Németh traded his life on the west coast to settle down in Memphis, Tennessee. He and Jaki, that girlfriend he followed to California, had married and started a family, and Memphis made sense for multiple reasons: It's centrally located for touring, the cost of living is inexpensive, and the river town is the historical ground zero for American roots music.

"I moved to Memphis because it is the epicenter for soul and blues," Németh confirms. "The wealth of knowledge runs deep in the instincts of its musicians and its studios."